Features

TrueCar.Com Releases June TrueTrends™ Report

June 16, 2010

Following a strong May, manufacturers continue to put a charge into their Spring/Summer sales by extending discounts and customer incentives. According to the June TrueTrends by TrueCar Report, not only will discounts continue to remain high, the domestic manufacturers will lead the way with brand discounts topping 10% across the board. Buyers looking to score a Chevrolet, Ford, GMC, Chrysler or Lincoln will be able to do so with the potential for great prices.

June 30th will be the day consumers can expect the best buys for the month, with a projected 9.05% discount from MSRP. The first half of July will see steady discounts over 7%. July 4th should also be a good buying day, with discounts over 7.5% and the possibility of getting more from holiday-minded dealers.
The biggest discounts of the month on 2010 models by body type are forecasted as follows:

Top 2010 Models by Body Type for June

Body Type

2010 Models

% Below MSRP

Pickup

Chevrolet Silverado 1500

21%

Sport Utility

Jeep Grand Cherokee

19%

Sedan

Hyundai Sonata

18%

Coupe

Ford Focus

15%

Van

Kia Sedona

13%

Convertible

Chevrolet Corvette

12%

Wagon

Hyundai Elantra Touring

11%

.

The top three largest incentives available are all on luxury models. The BMWM6 is offering $12,500 in dealer cash available at time of purchase. The InfinitiQX56 promises $6,000 and the VolvoXC70 provides a $5,000 incentive. These are June incentives and could change for July.

Convertibles, wagons and coupes are where the best potential inventory-based discounts will be seen. On average, convertibles are staying in inventory for 65 days, while wagons and coupes are on-lot for 62 days. Meanwhile, SUVs continue to move off the lots quickly, with an average inventory stay of 34 days. The HyundaiSonata is a potential steal, remaining in inventory at an average of 166 days. Good luck finding a GMC Terrain, which has an average stay of 13 days.

BMW is leading the way in sales of 2011 models, with 47.7% of their month’s sales coming on 2011 models. Most of BMW’s offerings are available in 2011 models, including the 3, 5 and 7 Series, M3, X5, X6 and Z4.

TrueCar Price Flex Score, Greatest Discounts and Days in Inventory

TrueCar uses several methods to identify the best new car deals of the month. Not only does TrueCar track vehicles with the greatest discounts, but the TrueCar Price Flex Score measures how elastic the transaction price is for a particular model. A high Flex Score means a possibility of a great swing (high or low) in the actual sale price from MSRP, while a low Flex Score means the price is far less negotiable and that the transaction price range is much narrower. Consumers have the best chance of obtaining a discount with the most flexible scores.

The TrueTrends Report also tracks the Average Days in Inventory by make/model and body type. The longer a vehicle is in inventory, the more likely a dealer is willing to offer a discount. TrueTrends provides this Average Days in Inventory information to consumers, adding yet another layer of data beyond just the average prices so they can get the best deals possible.